


Darcy Lewis and the One Time a Pick-Up Line Worked

by lmc291



Series: Laughing with Sinners [1]
Category: Daredevil (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: AU-- Matt was honest with Karen from the beginning, BAMF Darcy Lewis, F/M, Foggy Nelson Is a Good Bro, Karen Saves the Day, One Shot, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, politics nerd Darcy, pre- Daredevil Season 2, pre-Darcy Lewis/Matt Murdock, the one where they meet at a bar
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-24 09:05:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16171961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lmc291/pseuds/lmc291
Summary: In which Darcy can’t shake this one asshole in a bar, but she makes some new friends anyway. Or, Foggy’s observant; Karen’s a superhero; Darcy just needs a drink (or five); and Matt is one smooth sonofabitch.





	Darcy Lewis and the One Time a Pick-Up Line Worked

Foggy is slightly distracted from what Karen’s talking about.

There’s an argument coming from the far side of the room. “Oh for fuckssake... Listen, buddy, if a dog can understand what no means, you can too!” The woman is younger, this side of 30 maybe (...Matt could probably figure it out on smell alone, but whatever), and clearly at the bar to unwind after a hard week at work. Anyone with eyes can see it in her tailored dress and jacket combo and a hairdo that’s trying and succeeding in looking like a rat’s nest. She looks a little out of place in a dive like Josie’s, but he’d be the first person to tell you when you need a drink you need a drink.

There’s also the I-don’t-fucking-have-time-for-this-shit aura she has wrapped around her like a wool scarf in January that the bro trying to get a peek down her dress still isn’t picking up on. His friends have circled her seat like vultures. 

“She looks like she could use some help.” Foggy murmurs, shifting to stand if he needs to, as the woman adjusts her grip on her glass. He thinks she might throw it in the dude’s face, which, y’know, he’d totally deserve, but Josie doesn’t like fights.

Karen looks over her shoulder, takes a sip of her drink, then licks her lips and puts her glass down. “I got this.”

Foggy glances at her apprehensively. “Those guys don’t look like the most--”

“Girl Code, Foggy,” Karen cuts him off as she stands up. “Girl Code.” She throws a smile on her face and an extra bounce in her step as she makes her way across the bar. “Ohmygod! Jenna, what a small world!” She darts through the group of men to give the woman a hug. She thinks she can feel a sigh of relief when it’s reciprocated. 

“It’s been so long!” the brunette answered. 

Karen tugged on her hand. “We really need to catch up, and there’s someone I want to introduce you to. C’mon, we’re sitting over there.” 

They make a beeline back to the corner of the bar where she and Foggy were sitting. “Lady, you should have a cape,” the other woman proclaimed quietly. “You deserve it. Hell, I’ll make it. I don’t know how to sew, but I’ll learn just for you.”

Karen laughs. “I’m Karen. This is my friend, Foggy,” she introduces as she slides back onto her barstool. 

“Darcy,” she smiles as she shakes Foggy’s hand. 

“Those guys looked like total assholes,” Foggy comments.

Darcy groans and massages her scalp. “Ugh, all I wanted to do was unwind with a drink after the craziest, most insane week at work, but it’s apparently it’s harassment day for all the bros down in bro-ville.” She downs the rest of her drink. Seriously. In between helping Jane revise her conference presentation for next month and being a second eye going over some of Bruce’s new datasets, she’s STILL combing through the SHIELD data-dump and there was a small explosion in one of the R&D labs. And that’s just today.

“What do you do?” Karen asks, curious.

“I’m a data analyst,” Darcy answers, declining to volunteer exactly where she works. Stark Industries might be one of the biggest employers in Manhattan, but she’s not about to give near strangers the (correct) impression that she works anywhere near the Avengers Initiative. Not so soon after the Hydra disaster. Besides, she doesn’t want to give Steve a reason to break out his Disappointed Grandpa Face and force her to move back to the tower. 

Foggy’s nose scrunches up. “That sounds...kinda boring. No offense.”

Karen snorts. “This coming from the guy who reads his old con law case books for fun.”

Foggy points his finger at her emphatically. “Hey. Hey now. Matt’s the one who does that.” Karen just gives him a look, and he throws his hands up in the air. “Fine! Okay, fine. Yes, I do that, too.”

“Another round, guys?” Josie’s noticed their glasses were empty or nearly empty.

They agree, and Darcy stops her before she can walk away to fill the order. “I’m gonna pay for theirs.” Karen and Foggy start to protest, but she speaks over them while handing Josie the money. “No. Shush! No arguing! I owe you. You guys saved me from that fuckboy who somehow made it to adulthood without learning what no means. Seriously, this one’s on me. So," she changes the topic before they could argue more, "you're lawyers, then?"

"Well, he is," Karen nods her head in Foggy's direction. "I'm the secretary."

Darcy raises her eyebrow and Josie returns with the refilled drinks.

Karen giggles. "Nah, nothing sordid."

Darcy shrugs and takes a sip of her drink. "Hey, I'm not one to judge. So which firm are you with?"

Foggy puffs up a bit. "My own. Nelson and Murdock. We're based here in Hell's Kitchen.”

Darcy’s interested. She considered law for a hot second back in high school, but then she got her hands on a cousin’s LSAT prep book and accidentally opened to the logic games section first. Hard pass. “What sort of cases do you take?”

“We’ve done some tenancy cases. Um,” Foggy’s eye dart briefly, “whistleblower stuff. We help people who need it.”

“Any criminal defense?” she asks.

Foggy’s expression is firm. “When they’re not the scum of the earth. Like I said, we take care of people who need help.” The muscles in his face relax and he grins. “Though if they can actually pay, that’s an incredible bonus. Can’t really pay rent with delicious baked good despite them being, y’know, delicious.”

Darcy nods. From what she’s seen so far, these two don’t look like the kinds of folks who would defend human-shaped trash piles. They’re both milk and honey and sunshine.

Karen takes a swig of her beer. “Speaking of, d’you think Matt’s done with his thing yet?”

Foggy shrugs. “Who knows?”

“Matt?” Darcy asks.

“Foggy’s other half,” Karen supplies with a wink.

“Platonic! Platonic,” Foggy insists loudly. “He’s the Murdock in Nelson and Murdock.”

“Do you get that often?” Darcy laughs.

“You have no idea.” Foggy’s phone starts ringing. “Speak of the devil.”

Karen snorts into her bottle. Darcy suspects there’s an inside joke there. 

“Yeah, yeah, you coming out tonight?” Foggy asks into his phone. “Awesome! We’re at Josie’s. Yeah, our usual spot. See you in a bit.” He hangs up and turns do Darcy. “How do you feel about tequila shots?”

Karen cheers and calls over to Josie, “Oooohhhh, Josie, can we get a round of tequila shots?”

Darcy laughs. “Are you trying to get me drunk… more drunk before your friend comes?”

Foggy shakes his head with a grin. “You just look like a lady who likes tequila.”

Josie comes over with a tray of three full shot glasses, a salt shaker, and a bowl of lime wedges.

Darcy picks a glass and a lime. “You’re in luck, my friend, because that is an incredibly accurate statement.” The salt shaker gets passed around.

Lick, salt, lick, shot, lime.

Darcy slams her glass down on the bar and Foggy raises his hand for a high five. “You’re a pro!” 

She slaps his hand. “Please, I know how to drink. My Master’s thesis defense and the aftermath weren’t all that long ago.” She really wants to mention she drinks with Natasha Romanoff, but she can’t do that.

Karen nudges her. “You’re fun! You should come drinking with us again!” They’re all a bit tipsy at this point.

Darcy throws her head back with laughter. “Definitely! You guys are good people. Very good people.”

There’s a sound of a siren passing outside that’s louder than other times. Darcy’s eyes are drawn to the door and the man that just walked through it. Whoo-ee is he good looking. She thinks she sees his brow crease before Karen notices what she’s staring at. “Matt!” the blonde calls out excitedly as she waves her hand high in the air. Foggy joins in her antics and Darcy shakes her head. Judging from the glasses and the cane, she doesn’t think Matt can see what they’re doing. 

Foggy swings his arm towards her. “Look we made a new friend!”

Behind his glasses, Matt’s eyebrows twitch in a way that makes Darcy think he’s rolling his eyes at Foggy’s use of the word “look”. The smirk helps her with that conclusion.

“I’m Darcy,” she greets.

He turns to the sound of her voice and extends his hand. He’s got a killer smile. “Matt.”

Matt’s hand is warm and strong, Darcy observes as she shakes it. She makes some space for him before letting go and he slides up to the bar. “Karen’s a superhero, did you know? She saved me from some jerks earlier,” she explains to give the reason she’s with them.

He turns his head towards Karen and tilts it inquisitively before turning back to her. “A superhero, huh?” There’s amusement tugging at his lips.

Darcy nods enthusiastically. “I’m going to make her a fancy red cape.”

“She nodded,” Foggy announces to him.

Darcy winces. “Oops. I should be more verbal, shouldn’t I?

“No, it’s okay,” Matt reassures with another killer smile. His voice takes on a teasing quality. “Foggy likes doing that.” 

“Your usual Matt?” Josie calls over from the other side of the bar.

“Thanks, Josie,” he answers before turning to Darcy. “So what brings you out to Hell’s Kitchen? I don’t think I’ve heard your voice here at Josie’s before. This is a local dive.”

Darcy raises her eyebrows with a smile. “What, come here often?” she jokes. “Nah, I work close enough. After this week though, I wanted to wind down somewhere I wouldn’t run into coworkers. I actually recently moved to the neighborhood though. Thank God for the post-Incident rent drop, right? I needed a new apartment I could afford that wasn’t in, like, Bayside. Anyways, the best way to learn a neighborhood is from its bar, I figure.”

The all shared a chuckle at that. 

“Well, you’re not wrong,” Foggy answers, saluting her with his glass. “This is a damn good bar for a damn good neighborhood.”

“So what are the good food places in Hell’s Kitchen?” Darcy’s not the greatest cook, and food is always an excellent conversation topic. They all immediately agree on the Thai place around the corner from Matt’s apartment. Then there’s Sal’s, the hole-in-the-wall pizzeria that has the best undiscovered pizza on the island. There’s New York pizza (best in the world), and then there’s Sal’s. Karen chimes in with the mom and pop (or grandma and grandpa, as the case was) German bakery near the office. Darcy can feel herself drooling at the thought of those pastries.

And they all vehemently agree that no matter how hungry she is, or how good the food might smell when she walks by, don’t ever eat at the Cajun place down by the Intrepid because the food poisoning is so not worth it.

They order more drinks, and there’s a lull in the conversation until Foggy asks, “Hey, did you hear about the Avengers blowing up that suspected Hydra base in...what was it… Belarus? How crazy is that?”

The whole SHIELD-is-really-HYDRA thing is only a few months old, so Darcy’s not surprised it comes up in conversation. 

Karen shakes her head. “I can’t believe SHIELD was really HYDRA all along. I read some of the records on WikiLeaks and it’s just… it’s unbelievable.”

Matt speaks up. “I’m just glad the Avengers have nothing to do with HYDRA. They do good.”

“What do you think of the Avengers?” Foggy asks Darcy. 

She’s silent for a moment to collect her thoughts and figure out what to say that isn’t her admitting to being friends with them. “Okay, bear in mind you’re talking to a former political science major.” She takes a breath. “The Avengers deal with threats that are borderless and, because of that, it’s extremely hard to coordinate international efforts to deal with. It’s especially difficult to eliminate threats when the bad guys are either harbored by or are part of other countries’ governments. You’re not fighting a war in the most traditional sense. There’s that aspect to it.” 

She pauses to take a drink. “Then there’s when aliens and...and freakin space whales come pouring out of the sky. Having a response team that’s completely independent of any government is a good thing in the sense that they can get real work done quickly. However, they themselves would run into problems because the U.S. government wants them. Badly. You’ve heard General Talbot on the news, right? And other countries might not give them the latitude they need because they’re based in America. Like can you imagine Putin giving Captain America access to his country?” Darcy snorts. “Unlikely. I can also see problems with people feeling there’s no accountability. But I like them and I think they’re pretty flippin spectacular.”

The others stare at her. “What? I told you I did political science.”

“So…” Foggy draws it out. “How would you feel about a guy like Daredevil?”

Matt, who was drinking, starts coughing. Karen slaps him on the back a few times. “Swallowed wrong,” he explains once he regulates his breathing. Darcy misses the gleam in Foggy’s eyes. 

“But back to your question,” Darcy runs a finger around the rim of her glass. “The Avengers take care of things on the macro level, right? The aliens, the existential threats, HYDRA-- fucking Nazis…” She mutters that last bit. “There should totally be something on the micro level, too. Jane Doe can admire and be thankful for the Avengers all she wants, but let’s be real here. The odds of Iron Man swooping in to save your ass any other time than an alien invasion-- and even then-- are impossible. They can’t and don’t focus on a single area like Daredevil seems to be doing in Hell’s Kitchen. He’s a much more tangible savior.”

“That sounds like you didn’t believe he set off those bombs a few months back,” Foggy observes keenly. Darcy’s not sure why, but she feels like she’s being cross-examined.

She shakes her head. “Absolutely not. It’s not his M.O. The type of guy who beats the shit outta human traffickers with his bare hands and then sets the captive women free doesn’t turn around and blow up five buildings or shoot cops. It didn’t match up. Someone with a history of saving people doesn’t intentionally hurt innocent civilians or put them at risk like that. Also, there’s the whole fighting style preference thing. Dude’s a martial artist, a close range fighter. It’s not his style to remotely detonate something.”

“Ha! I knew I wasn’t the only one who believed in him!” Karen crows.

“You seem to have thought about this a lot,” Matt comments, head tilted in her direction. 

Darcy looks from Karen to Foggy, who has a pleased expression on his face, to Matt, who looks intent. “Did I find myself in a fan club? But it sounds like it wasn’t always that way.”

Karen shrugs. “Both Matt and Foggy got hurt in the explosions.”

Darcy nods. “Oh. Yeah. Yeah, I get that. But you always thought he was a good guy?”

“He saved me once,” Karen explains simply.

“Wow. Yeah, that would do it. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Karen smiles. “Me, too. It was a rough night.”

The conversation moves on. They cover their favorites: movies, books, tv shows. Darcy learns she has a lot in common with these people. And they really are good people. She’s got a pretty good read on them now. Karen is vivacious, kind, and a goddamn superhero for staging a daring rescue from the bro squad. Foggy is clever, a little awkward, and she’s already decided he’s probably the sweetest person she’ll ever meet. She also thinks there’s definitely some UST between Karen and him, which she hopes they figure out because they would be just too gosh darn cute together. And Matt… Matt seemed like he might be on the quieter side of the personality spectrum when he showed up, but now he’s more open-- still serious, though-- and very, very charming. Witty, too-- he’s had a few zingers for Foggy and it’s funny watching them go at each other. She can tell they’ve been close friends for a very long time. 

Darcy picks up her purse from where it was resting between her feet and roots around in order to check her phone. Two missed phone calls, 5 text messages. “Aww, shit,” she mutters.

Matt tilts his head in her direction. Karen and Foggy are too busy playing a game (where the first one to laugh loses) to notice. “Is everything okay?” he murmured.

The one of the calls and four of the texts are from Jane. She checks the texts and they’re all variations of where the hell are you?????? The other call is from Steve. The last text is from Clint:

CB: Hey, no one’s been able to reach your for hours. You’re not at your place. You okay?

“Fuck,” Darcy swears in response. “Godfuckingdamnit. I’m gonna be rude for a minute,” she said as she presses the send button and raises the phone to her ear. Matt waves his hand in dismissal. 

The dial tone barely rings once before Clint picks up. “Are you okay?”

“Jesus Christ, it’s a Friday night. Where do you think I am?” She cuts him off before he can answer. “I’m out getting drunk with friends. After this week, I think I deserve it.”

“Darce, you really need to tell one of us where you’re going,” he insists. There are voices in the background. She supposes the rest of the team is gathered around the call.

Darcy groans and rubs her head. Karen and Foggy are paying attention now. “No, see this is why I moved out. I miss hanging out with other people! I need to have a life outside of,” she pauses and waves her hand around even though he can’t see it through the phone, “of everything.” Being drunk is making her more aggressive than she would probably be for this phone call, but she still remembers discretion where it counts. She already knows she’s gonna have to apologize for this, no matter how much she wants to rail about deserving a true nine-to-five job with weekends that are respected and 'yes, Darcy, you’re right-- it CAN wait until Monday.' But he went to her apartment just because she didn’t answer? That’s going to require a much longer conversation about boundaries. 

“Darce--”

“Goodnight,” she says firmly and hangs up. She looks up to see the rest of the group staring at her. 

Foggy’s eyes dart in Matt’s direction-- Matt’s hand is fisted around his glass-- before looking her in the eye. His head is tilted in concern. “Boyfriend?”

“What?” Darcy asks. “God, no.” Clint? Her boyfriend? Eww, he’s been like her brother since basically Puente Antiguo. Then the question clicks and she realizes what her side of the phone call probably sounded like. “No! Just the perils of having friends who are coworkers who are recently former roommates.”

Judging from everyone’s expressions, they don’t really believe her. “Darcy, if you’re in trouble, we can help you,” Karen softly points out. Right. Lawyers. 

“Guys, I swear, I’m okay. I’m actually single at the moment, so no intimate partner issues here.” She looks at their faces and extends her hand. “Pinky promise.”

Foggy caves first and hooks his pinky around hers. Karen curls her pinky underneath theirs. Darcy looks at Matt, who’s relaxed his grip on his drink. “C’mon, Matt, you’re a millennial. You know what this is.” With her free hand, she removes his from the glass and folds it into a fist with just the pinky extended. It takes her a few moments to find a way for his finger to fit around the knot the rest of theirs have made but it works. “Aaaaaannnnd there! I pinky promise that I’m okay.”

Matt locks their fingers together before she can pull away. “Do you pinky promise that you’ll come to us if you ever do need help?” His voice is deeper, rougher than it’s been during the rest of the evening. It makes her stomach flip a bit.

Darcy’s absolutely floored by the fact that a group of people she’s only known for a handful of hours cares so much (even if she’s actually not in trouble, just vague for safety reasons not domestic-related). “Yeah. Yeah, I promise.”

“Phones!” Karen suddenly shrieks and pulls her finger out of the knot to get hers. “Darcy, what’s your number?”

Darcy pulls out her phone again, fiddles with it for a bit to open up the contacts page, and offers it to the other woman. “Swap?” 

“Woah, is that the new StarkPhone?” Foggy asks, eyes wide, as she punches her number into Karen’s phone.”

“Um, yeah,” Darcy answers. “Got it through work. My boss is, uh, really, really, anti-Apple. It’s actually kinda funny how anti-Apple he is. I don’t really need something this hi-tech,” which is a lie, but they don’t need to know that, “but I have no desire to pay two phone bills.” That’s the truth. She hands Karen’s phone back and takes Foggy’s. Foggy is still drooling over her phone. She slides Foggy’s phone back to him and see’s that Matt’s holding his phone. 

He has an embarrassed-looking smile on his face. “Do you mind…?” he trails off.

Darcy smiles and takes it. Foggy’s cough sounds suspiciously like “Dammit, Murdock!” 

“What’s the easiest way I can program this for you?” she asks, in the habit asking after things like this since meeting Clint.

She sees him bite his lip a little. It’s adorable. “Um, just program it normally.” Before she can make an ass of herself and ask how a blind man can use a smartphone, he expands, “Voice commands are great.”

“You got it, dude.” Darcy’s hormones are all a-flutter (and if Foggy’s super unsubtle not-cough was anything to go by, it’s not for nothing). He’s attractive, smart, and adorable to boot. And probably the best part is he’s not an Avenger. Yeah, that’s totally the best part. “I’m in there as ‘Darcy’. I’m just gonna use your phone to call mine. Is that cool?” 

Matt smiles. “Yeah, go ahead.”

She hits send and then remembers her ringtone is the theme song to the hideously cheesy Avengers cartoon that came out following the Battle of New York. Karen, who had been finishing her drink, snorts so hard a little comes out her nose. That sends all of them into raucous laughter.

As they collect themselves, Karen wipes tears out of her eyes. “You actually liked that show?”

Darcy’s still getting her breathing under control and that, combined with the amount of alcohol she’s had tonight makes her trip over her words a bit. “The-the cheese is a-mazing. Don’t diss the cheese!” She thinks the short-lived cartoon was hysterical because she knows the people it’s about and how pissed off they got when they saw it. The only personality they got close was Tony’s and even that was a bizarre caricature. 

She looks at her phone again and notices the time: 12:17am. “God, how am I still awake? Guys, I’m gonna have to call it a night. I’m gonna get into my jammies and sleep for three-eeeeee,” she stands to get off the stool and stumbles a bit-- Matt apparently has lightning-fast reflexes and catches her, one hand at her elbow and the other at the small of her back, “Holy Jesus, you have fast reflexes! Thanks for saving me from a faceplant.”

He smiles and damn if it doesn’t make her pulse jump. “Any time.” She wishes she could see his eyes, because she imagines he has laugh lines to match the dimples. “Are you sure you’re good enough to make it home?” he asks, still holding onto her. 

“Yeah, um,” Is she breathless? Just wee bit. “Yeah, I’ll be okay. 52nd isn’t that far and I should still be able to hail a cab.”

Matt lets go of her and Karen announces, “We’ll wait with you.”

“Are you sure? You really don’t have to.” Foggy and Karen are wearing matching resolved faces, so Darcy concedes. “Okay, if you insist.”

The others gather their things and file outside to congregate on the sidewalk near where other patrons are smoking. They stand in silence and huddle close for warmth. The weather had been turning cooler all week, but none of them is prepared for the first truly autumn night of the season. 

The first couple of cabs Darcy tries to flag don’t stop, so she turns to the group. “So it was really great meeting you guys! I had a lot of fun tonight. Really.” She throws her arms around Karen. “Beautiful warrior queen! Thank you for saving me!” Okay, she’s more than a little drunk. Whatever.

Karen is also more than a little drunk and laughs in response. “I demand sufficient hero-worship as repayment!” She starts out in a very poorly done regal voice, but finishes in a fit of giggles.

Darcy lets go and curtseys exaggeratedly. “Yes, my Goddess, my Queen!” She stumbles over her feet while rising

Foggy and Matt chuckle at their antics. “For the record,” Foggy casually swings his arm to point in her direction. “I was the one who noticed first.”

She hugs him, too. “Well, thank you for noticing.”

Darcy’s a very tactile, huggy person normally, and that inclination only increases when she’s been drinking. So she doesn’t think before hugging Matt tightly as well. At least, she doesn’t until she feels him stiffen up for a moment. “Shit,” she mutters when she notices and starts to pull away. She’s embarrassed because she goes on and on about how important consent is, and here she is clearly non-consensually hugging someone. 

But before she’s able to extract herself with what dignity she can muster and before she can apologize profusely, Matt’s arms come up and wrap around her to reciprocate. She might have squeaked in surprise and she might have felt him laugh a little in response. 

“Oooh, hey, taxi!” Foggy calls over to them as he throws his arm out. Fortunately this one’s empty and it pulls up alongside them. He opens the door as Darcy extricates herself from the hug. 

“We really need to do this again,” she says with a smile. The suggestion is to the whole group but it’s Matt who responds with a “Yeah. Yeah, we should.”

She climbs into the cab and Foggy closes the door behind her. She waves through the window and the cab pulls away from the curb. The trio on the sidewalk watches the car as it turns the corner at the end of the block. 

When it’s out of sight, Foggy turns to Matt. “Dude. How do you always know?”

**Author's Note:**

> This may become a series.
> 
> Also, go read The Making of Monsters by shuofthewind (https://archiveofourown.org/series/280011), because I didn't know how much I loved this ship until I read that series.


End file.
